This essay describes the analysis of the poem ‘Still I Rise ‘by Maya Angelou. Marguerite Annie Johnson Angelou was a renowned American actress, author, poet, dancer, civil rights activist, and screenwriter. Her 1969 memoir ‘I know why the caged bird sings’ was one of her best works as it made history in that it was the first nonfictional bestseller by a woman of color. Maya Angelou was an award-winning college professor and can be considered one of the most influential women of her era. The poem ‘still I rise’ is a motivational and empowerment message to fight injustice and prejudice. The poem one of the most popular poems by Maya Angelou. The poem is a pillar of hope for the subjugated and exploited members and victims of wrongdoings in society. It gives them the morale to move on with life regardless of being looked down upon by their exploiters. It is also a reckoning to those in leadership on the importance of equality, equity, and doing good to others. Therefore the poem is a message of hope to the hopeless and helpless promising them better days ahead.
The primary thesis of Maya’s poem ‘still I rise’ is exhibited through her tone and diction. She uses precise, bitter, and is even sarcastic in some instances of her poem, as shown in lines one to four (1-4 of) the poem. “You may write me down in history, with your bitter, twisted lies. You may trod me in the very dirt, But still, like dust, I’ll rise.” You may trod me in the very dirt, But still, like dust, I’ll rise.” [1-4] Maya’s direct pointing out bitter ways of viewing her is clear. The sarcastic nature of Maya’s tone can be seen in her use of words such as trod, twisted, and bitter, among others. Maya’s diction and tone are very prominent in the poem. Her use of imagery and personification in the poem enables the reader to relate and visualize her words. The following lines are examples of instances of personification in the poem; “You may shoot me with your words, you may cut me with your eyes, you may kill me with your hatefulness, but still, like air, I’ll rise.” These instances of personification enable the reader to create mental images (imagery) in the poem. For instance, a reader can create a mental image of the persona being shot with words, cut with eyes, and killed with hatefulness. They, therefore, create an atmosphere of aggression and hate.
Similarly, Maya Angelou has also used various sound styles in the poem. These styles create rhythm in the poem as they enhance the poem’s memorability. Sound styles also create rhyme in a poem hence making it easy to the reader for recitement. In the poem ‘still, I rise, ‘some of the sound styles evident include alliteration, consonance, and repetition. Alliteration refers to the repetition of the same initial consonant sound at the beginning of words close to each other in a poem. Out of the huts of history’s shame [29]– in this line, alliteration is evident in the repetition of the initial consonant sound /h/ in the words huts and history’s.
Moreover, the line; that I dance like I’ve got diamonds [27]– Similarly, the line portrays the repetition of the initial consonant sound /d/ in the words dance and diamonds is an instance of alliteration. Consonance is a sound style in which there is the repetition of the same consonant sound at the end of words that are close to each other in a poem; for example, in the line; Welling and swelling I bear in the tide [32], there is the repetition of the consonant sound /g/ in the words welling and swelling. Also, several words and phrases have been repeated in the poem to create an emphasis on Maya’s thematic concerns. For instance, the phrase I’ll rise has been used severally to emphasize her desire and hope to be better.
Maya’s poem ‘still I rise’ primary thematic concern is self-confidence and respect. She portrays how she will surpass all the hate speech and feelings against her through her esteem, and it shows that there is nothing that can get her down, and if the hardships manage to make her fall, she will still rise over and over again. The poem is a proclamation of her determination to attaining her success, and she would not allow hateful speeches and unjust deeds to take her down. The following are some lines of the poem that portrays the theme of self-esteem and determination at its best. “You may shoot me with your words, You may cut me with your eyes, You may kill me with your hatefulness, But still, like air, I’ll rise.” [21-24]
WORK CITED
Angelou, Maya, and Heywood Hale Broun. Still, I rise. Jeffrey Norton Publishers, 1994.
The Archiac, Ostinoids And The Igneri Sample Paper
America has had different groups of people living in it for more than 10,000 years. The main occupants of Puerto Rico were the hunters who arrived on the island 1000 years before the Spanish. Igneris, who fostered the Taino culture, had additionally settled there by 1000 years. They had ranches with a variety of plants, both vegetables and fruits. They communicated in various dialects. They had intriguing and different ethnical cultures. Different ethnic groups were living there, for example, the Archaic, Ostinoids, and the Igneris. The dominant group was the Boriken and that is why the place is now called Borinquen. The people embraced communism in that they never fought for property, they had an organized society. They had chieftaincies hierarchical way of governance.
The old Archaic societies of North and South America evolved from the customs of the earliest Americans due to response to the changes in environments, the Paleo-Indians. The icy masses dissolved, and ocean levels rose (Khvorykh, (2020).). Exceptionally huge creatures, for example, mammoths and giants ground sloths couldn’t adapt to the progressions and become terminated. Different creatures, like buffalo, adapted by decreasing in size. Simultaneously new grasses, trees, and different plants evolved. As the climate changed, so did the Indians’ ways of life. The most noticeable change was in their eating routine. The Archaic people utilized a more extensive scope of plant and creature food sources than the Paleo-Indians had. As the larger animals grew extinct, the Archaic people started depending on small animals like the antelope, folks, and deer.
Archaic people developed a new adaptation to their new environment by inventing new technologies. They came up with a short, spear-thrower and a hooked rod that had a great force that at a distance could accurately target a prey (Kitagawa, (2018).). Other tools like fishnets and hooks and lines for catching sea creatures were also invented. The Ostinods embraced woodworking by creating hunting tools. For example, the gouges, axes, and polished stones helped in grinding hard nuts and seeds into more consumable. Both had collecting tools, that is the nettings and basketry that helped them in storing foods.
The Ostinoids were named after the Ostiones site in Boriken in the Caribbean in the years 600 to 1200 A.D. History books and Archeological research shows that Ostinoids peoples existed before 1492 (Sullivan, 2019). The groups were named based on the artifacts related to them. It is still debated that the Ostionoids evolved from the Saladoids who moved from Central America to Cuba.
The Ostinoids had a unique tradition away from the Salanoids. They were socially oriented based on pottery, farming and embraced the communist way of life. Ostionan stoneware is portrayed by straightforward dark smearing, and an orange-red slip applied to the entire ordinarily dainty and hard ceramic vessel (Shev, 2020). It is generally alluded to as redware. Generally, Ostinoids are defined as potters. The first potter mentioned in Puerto was for the Corozo culture at Blanca-the Ostinoids.
The Igneri is the indigenous Arawak people of the Southern Lesser Antilles. Historically, the Igneri are believed to have been conquered by the Island Caribs and displaced before the European contact. By 300BC the Igneris were established and more advanced than their predecessors on the land (Hofman, (2019)). They were mostly oriented to pottery, carvings, and multiple coloring. They knew how to make pots and thin griddles used for cooking cassava. In addition to their great skills in pottery, they were also great fishermen and horticulturists which is a unique form of diet from the other groups. They could build big canoes with a capacitance of ferrying 100 people. This is why they are said to have advanced more than their fellow ethnical groups.
Both the Igneri, Archiac, and Ostinoids were gifted in agribusiness, fishing, and kayak making and route finding. They developed cotton, reaped cassava, and practiced hunting. The Archiac gents and single ladies customarily painted their bodies for fighting (Massaro, (2018).). They never wore garments, except for wedded ladies who wore little skirts made from cotton. The societies had faith in one divine being the Yocahu.
In general, the Archaic time frame is portrayed by the substitution of the last major game of hunting transformation with agriculture (food gathering). Even though the group embraced the different ethnical cultures, they still had a communist way of life and had much cultural practice in common. Apart from their specification, they both tend to practice pottery and hunting and gathering.
References
Hofman, C. L. ( (2019)). Power, political economy, and historical landscapes of the modern world: Interdisciplinary perspectives. . Indigenous Caribbean networks in a globalizing world., 55.
Khvorykh, G. V. ((2020).). Archiac people. Global Picture of Genetic Relatedness and the Evolution of Humankind. Biology, , 9(11), 392.
Kitagawa, J. K. ((2018).). Archaeological Research in Asia,. Adaptations of the Early Jomon people in their settlement relocation to climate change around Lake Mikata, Central Japan. , 16, 66-77.
Massaro, M. N. ((2018).). A Bioarchaeological Case Study of Prehistoric Reburials from Nevis, West Indies (Doctoral dissertation, San José State University). The Conservation, Excavation, and Analysis of Ancient Human Remains:.
Shev, G. (2020). Taino dietry. Feeding Opiyelguobirán., 1-19.
Sullivan, S. &. (2019). Cotton Cay, Turks and Caicos Islands. G. Report of Archaeological Investigations at CC-2, , 50-62.
The Bolsa Chica Wetlands Essay Sample For College
The Bolsa Chica Wetlands is a natural public land located in Orange County that is governed by California state. The reserve is immediately adjacent to Huntington Beach near the pacific coast highway; The public land covers over 1200 acres of land with various plants and animals. Some of the common species include Blacked Neck Stilts, Black Skimmers, Lizards, and ground squirrels. The land is under the protection of the fish and wildlife service of California Department, to ensure that the endangered and threatened species are under safety. Our research was conducted on 29th November 2021. Therefore, the paper aims to discuss more Bolsa Chica Wetlands, including its description, weather, climate, the various plant communities, wildlife present, terrain, and its brief local history.
Below is an overview of the land (Bolsachica.org);
Bolsa Chica is an attractive land with beautiful scenery. Warner avenue bounds it to the North, the residential development to the east and the Pacific coast highway to the west (Osborne, 147-156). There are two small parking lots in the area; this includes the north lot and the south lot that lies at its entrance. Its interpretive centre is located in the north lot, which is the starting point of the Mesa Trail that leads to the final destination of the Mesa trail. On the other hand, the Loop is located in the south lot that crosses a wooden bridge through to the sand-dune trail (Osborne, 147-156). A channel runs through the reserve, which was made to control the flooding effects and protect the wetlands. Besides, the Newport Inglewood fault also runs across the area. The area is also swampy with a salt marsh that has estuarine conditions (Osborne, 147-156). Its landscape is largely influenced by the changing tides that create unique zones where different wildlife species can be found.
Below is an image showing the swampy landscape (Bolsachica.org);
On the day of the visit, the prevailing weather conditions were recorded. The temperature was recorded to be 56℉ or 8 degrees Celsius with a humidity of 87%. The wind was calm with a solar Rad 0w/m2 (WeatherForYou.com, n.p). At our time of visit, the tides were rising, with the highest tide being 4.27ft and the lowest one at 0.33ft, which largely contributed to the drop in temperature and high humidity conditions.
The climatic conditions of the area is Mediterranean like. Summers is warm and dry while the winters is mild and wet (Hughes, n.p). The temperatures are also high in the coastal regions of Bolsa Chica wetlands with average daily temperatures ranging around 70℉ to 80℉. The summers are mainly hot and dry while the winters are wet and cool. Besides the fog is very common in all seasons most especially in the mornings (Hughes, n.p). This climatic condition has significantly affected plant growth. For instance, the vegetive development is best when the temperature increases, hence most of the wetland areas have poor plant growth. Most of the plant species are those that can survive in drought and flood areas where there is extreme precipitations (Hughes, n.p). Furthermore, global warming is still expected to rise in the near future thus affecting plant growth. We expect that the endemic plants found in this region will disappear due to the rise in temperatures.
The impact of the human population has greatly influenced the climatic conditions of Bolsa Chica wetlands. This can be seen with the effect caused to the Plankton species. There has been an increase in temperature due to global warming, mainly caused by the emission of greenhouse gases that people have been introducing since the age of the industrial revolution (Walton et al., 107-116). There has been an increase in temperature by 0.85degree Celsius in the area. With climate change, more intense drought is expected if no measure is taken into consideration, which will harm most of the species in the area (Walton et al., 107-116). And to protect this issue, a new inlet was added along with tide gates that will help regulate the flow of water in the area. We saw that the oceans were taking up more volume, which contributed to many sea-level rises that needed to be regulated.
The area has five major plant communities due to its dynamic ecosystem. Various plants thrive within this area, in the salty areas, in dunes, in grasslands, and aromatic coastal areas (Jacob et al., 128-141). Most of its parts are, however, salt marsh. The coastal area is prone to long rains that cause floods in the area due to high tides from saltwater from the ocean. Hence most of the plants have unique characteristics to thrive in harsh conditions. The water flows through the area through two channels, mainly the Anaheim Bay and another inlet in the Seapoint eve (Jacob et al., 128-141). As a result, the plants have to deal with the varying changes in water levels due to the changing tides. Plants that can survive in salty areas are ideal in this region. On the aspect of food pyramid, the animals and dead plants are at the base, depicting that decomposer are of great significant in this ecosystem to offset balance (Jacob et al., 128-141). Plants in the coastal dunes have adapted to rough conditions. Some plants have spreading mats and small hairs in their leaves to help trap moisture in marine layer (Jacob et al., 128-141). Some of the common names of the plants are the Western ragweed, the Alkali weed, saltwort, the shortgrass, black sage, deer weed, California bulrush, mule fat, etc.
The area is home to some wildlife species. Some of them include the Shovelnose guitarfish, the California halibut, and the white seabass. The grass areas of the wetlands have several harmless snakes such as the gopher snakes with different colours, the kingsnakes, the rattlesnakes, the diamondbacks and many other types of snakes (Freedman et al., 88-97). Other wildlife species include the coyotes, squirrel, rabbit, and western lizard. In spring, the area is also home to over 400 birds species, including endangered ones such as the light-footed rail, the savannah sparrow, the Caspian tern, the tailed hawk, and the red-tailored hawk (Freedman et al., 88-97). In addition, there are several fish species identified in Bolsa Chica beach, including the Croaker, the leopard sharks, the halibut, and corbina, which are endangered species of fish.
Below is an image of a coyote and a hawk in the area (Bolsachica.org);
A Coyote (Bolsachica.org).
A wetland bird (Bolsachica.org).
The Bolsa Chica wetlands are the current largest remaining coastal marshland in southern California. The reserve covers an extensive area of over 1200 acres. Both salt and fresh water from the ocean and runoff pass through the area, making it an important stop on the pacific flyway. The land is a coastal estuary with different kinds of habitats such as salt marsh, fresh water marsh, and mudflats making it an important habitat for various California species.
The history of the area is long and varied. The region’s earliest inhabitants were the native Indians, dating back to the late 8000 years ago (Cavanagh et al., 58-65). The archaeologists discovered their presence after finding the cog stones, which depicts their lifestyle. After the colonization of California, Spain took over the area and partitioned it into areas called ranchos. In 1920, the standard oil company took control of the area after entering a lease agreement to extract oil. Then In 1940, the US military constructed two bunkers in fear of getting attacked by japan. The bunkers were destroyed in 1995, leaving circular frames in the area. The land was then acquired in the 1960s by Signal Landmark and created as an ecological reserve. In which the Amigos was later founded in 1976 as a plan to save the wetlands. Another important facility created in the area is the pacific electric railway which the remains can see of asphalt pavings. Currently, the Tin can beach found in the area is an important attraction site in California located in Bolsa Chica wetlands.
Works-cited
“Bolsa Chica Conservancy -.” Bolsa Chica Conservancy, 19 May 2021, bolsachica.org/the-wetlands/animals/. https://bolsachica.org/the-wetlands/animals/
Cavanagh, J. William, Kimberly M. Martinez, and Michael H. Horn. “An Ecosystem Experience.” Science Scope 41.8 (2018): 58-65.
Jacob, Céline, Sébastien Thorin, and Sylvain Pioch. “Marine biodiversity offsetting: An analysis of the emergence of an environmental governance system in California.” Marine Policy 93 (2018): 128-141.
Freedman, Ryan, et al. “Does Estuary Restoration Design Alter the Fine Scale Movements of Gray Smoothhounds (Mustelus californicus) in Southern California?.” Bulletin, Southern California Academy of Sciences 116.2 (2017): 88-97.
Hughes, Brent B. “Estuarine & Wetland Ecosystems: the first steps in developing an approach to leveraging existing monitoring programs.” (2017).
Osborne, Thomas J. “Seven. Footprints in Sand: Peter Douglas’s legacy.” Coastal Sage. University of California Press, 2017. 147-156.
Walton, Raymond, et al. “Engineering and Environmental Assessment of Enhanced Bolsa Chica Wetland.” Constructed Wetlands for Water Quality Improvement. CRC Press, 2020. 107-116.
Weatherforyou.com. “Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve California Local Weather Forecasts and Conditions – WeatherForYou.com.” National, International and Local Weather Reports, 29 Nov. 2021, www.weatherforyou.com/reports/index.php?pands=Bolsa+Chica+Ecological+ReserveCalifornia.